Arthur Tyler to Gov. Kasich: "I am not a monster"

Former Death Row inmate Arthur Tyler says he would like to thank Gov. John
Kasich for sparing his life. But he can't.

"You didn't give me the gift of life, you re-sentenced me to death in prison for a murder I did
not commit," Tyler says in an "open letter" to Kasich obtained by
The Dispatch.

Kasich spared
Tyler from his scheduled execution on May 28, but commuted his death sentence to life without
the possibility of parole. Tyler, who claims he did not kill Sander Leach, a Cleveland
vegetable seller, was moved to the general population section of Trumbull Correctional
Institution, which means is no longer in lockup 23 of 24 hours every day.

"I can say it is a big change for me to walk around free of shackles, free of handcuffs. But
sir, I am not free of this nightmare of wrongful conviction."

The Ohio Parole Board, given the doubt about whether Tyler or co-defendant Leroy Head
was the actual shooter, recommended that Tyler should have his sentence commuted so he could
become eligible for parole release. Kasich, however, felt differently.

"I am truly sorry that Mr. Sander Leach was killed," Tyler wrote. "It was a tragedy, but I’m
not the person who killed him. The system failed. I am not a murderer. I am not someone that you
need to lock up and throw the key away. Sir, you were my last line of defense, the last person who
could look at my case and say, “Enough is enough.”

"I am not a monster. I implore you to take another look at this case. All Ohioans want a fair
and accurate criminal justice system. Please look at this again."

Kasich's office has indicated he has no plans to revisit Tyler's clemency.